Christmas Day Far From Home

As the title of this entry suggests, our hostel guests are spending Christmas far from home; often for the first time in their lives. Shops, restaurants, clubs and pubs all close while the city shuts down and goes home.

It seems to be a recipie for a rather depressing time for those who are travelling alone; however, we at the Canadiana do our very best to make the day quite festive.

It really begins at midnight Christmas Day when Teresa (our head of housekeeping and resident superwoman) arrives to begin cooking for a Christmas Day meal. It begins with half a dozen very large turkeys, roasted to a golden brown perfection.

Add a delicious stuffing, veggies, mashed potatoes and an assortment of desserts, it all combines to make a pretty fine Chrismas Brunch/Dinner. It begins at 2 PM sharp!

We cook a lot of turkey. Nothing would be worse than running short of food at a Christmas meal. We set up a buffet styled self serve table – an eat-whatever-you-like affair – and we planned it just about right! (We’ve done this before!)

When all was said and done, our more than eighty dinner guests were well sated while leaving food still on the buffet table; just the way it should be.

A special time was created by quite a number of “non hostel guests” in attendance. These are foreign travellers who temporarily reside in Toronto on “work/travel visas” – usually for a period of up to one-year.

Their first stop upon arrival in Toronto had been Canadiana Backpackers and many were guests of ours for weeks or months before finding accommodation closer to their workplaces in apartments and flats. But in the time they spent with us, they became more than just “guests”, they are our friends; all former residents were more than welcome to attend. It is always so good to see them again!

Our motto is “It feels like home” and it is a real pleasure to try to provide one for lonely travellers at Christmas.

We wish all of our guests and friends the very best for the holiday season and a wonderful year in 2008!

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“Superwoman” Teresa with Thiago from Brazil.

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If i couldnt be at home for Christmas, i wouldnt have wanted to be anywhere else in the world. Theres no better way to have a merry christmas when your travelling alone than to enjoy it with a huge meal, surrounded by 80 other people in your exact same position.

I made the decision to return to Toronto for Christmas time, based on this hostel and the friends and relationships i’ve made through it. Christmas day didnt disappoint one bit, this place really is my home away from home.

Thanks to all the staff of the Canadiana, Teresa especially, and not just for Christmas Day, but for all year round.

I’m glad that I stayed at Canadianna for second Christmas in a row. They live up to their word of making you feel at home far away from home. I enjoyed the Christmas dinner, which had a variety of good food thanks to Teresa’s hard work. I made new friends and I’m having a good time once again in Christmas. In the future I will definitely stay at Canadiana. Thanks to all the staff at Canadiana for all the excellent service they bring me.

This was my second christmas at the Canadiana Hostel and again it was more than i expected.
Great food and friendly company..
I couldnt? have asked for a better christmas day with my family of the Canadiana hostel..
I would like to thank the staff for there excellent efforts to make christmas day a memorable experience.

This was only my second Christmas away from home & I couldn\’t have asked for a better place to spend it. Teresa excelled herself with all the fab cooking. The company was \”Interesting\” to say the least so a great day was had.
Thanks.

When you take the decision of leave your house and go to another country, sometimes you can\’t feel how will be without your parents for some important dates. You think that you will be alone and sad. At home, you have the comfort of ? your family and traditions.? But at the Canadiana you can not feel sad.?

Anyway, when I arrived here (Hostel) I could? see that there was something different in the air. The people who work here try to do their best to make that you feel like \”at home\”. So, today, the day after Christmas, I can say that I? had the best Christmas that a person could have far from their home country. It was? a Christmas that? I will never forget.

What a great day……and a great dinner! I was worried about not being around my family this year but i found a new one at the Canadiana. The food was first class (HUGE THANKS!! to Teresa) and the company was even better. Big thanks to all my friends and the staff of the Canadiana for making it a wonderful experience.